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Friday, May 9, 2014

Nike Women's Half Marathon: DC 2014

Nike, the Greek Goddess of Victory

Staying at The Marriott Metro Center was a really great idea- we were literally 2 blocks from the start/finish. It made the wake up call very nice. This was the first time on a racecation with so many people and the meeting place and time was not as painful as I thought it might be having 3 rooms of people. We walked over and said our goodbyes as everyone went to their respective corrals. My nerves were bad for some reason, even with going to the bathroom in the lobby, I still had to use the portapotties. Surprisingly, the lines were non-existent 10 minutes before start. Everyone was ready in their corrals, which is not something I normally see.

It
was also warmer than I was used to running in. As much as I tried with
the body glide and sunscreen, it was not good enough. Ouch! But there
was an amazing breeze that kept it perfectly chilly and great race
weather.

Having the start line facing the capitol was pretty awesome. Getting to run around DC and see all the monuments was pretty awesome as well. I brought my actual camera because I thought it would be nice to take pictures, but honestly, I only took photos within the first mile and then put it away.

I loved all the Luna signs!

The course had a couple of inclines I was not expecting. Normally, I'm not a fan of out-and-back courses, but I loved this one because everyone was so encouraging! There were tons of high fives and lots of "You look awesome!"s. It was just the distraction I needed from the course.

It's a women's race, so the course was crowded. Like, I was in a faster corral than I should've been in and I'm having trouble running faster than a 15 minute mile crowded. It took until about mile 7 for the crowd to thin out and for me to get my head in the game. By that time, my knees were giving me trouble and I was just done. For a race I wasn't trying to race, I regret not enjoying myself more, but it was extremely frustrating.I wish they would've had a better corralling system, that would've fixed a lot of it.

Luckily, the entertainment was really awesome- TONS of DJs and lots of drumming bands. There were many times along the course I turned off my ipod to enjoy, and I don't usually want to do that in a race.

Not gonna lie, the chocolate stop at this race was better than the one at the 15k. There were chocolate stations for about a half of a mile- no kidding. After my last disaster with eating chocolate, I passed. I didn't want to risk getting sick again and I didn't have anywhere to save it for later with it not melting. But I do love that you have the option of the sugar rush to the finish.

Bathroom lines were insane. Thank goodness I don't usually go during a race. The lines were Mickey and Minnie in front of the castle during the Princess half marathon long. Seriously. And speaking of lines-

As soon as you finished the race, there was a line to get water. A line to get a heat sheet. A line to get a bag to put your post-race nutrition in. A line to get the nutrition. A line to get your necklace. A line to get your picture with a man in a suit. A line to get your hair done. A line for merchandise. A line to get your photo taken with a sign. A line to get your photo taken with a different sign.

So. Many. Lines.

I did not have the patience for all that. Not normally, and definitely not after 13.1 miles of an overcrowded course. I am a very big fan of keeping moving after a race. I'm also a slow runner, so most of this stuff is usually cleared out by the time I'm done. Luckily, I ordered my finisher stuff online (BEST part about this race IMO) and didn't need photos of all that. Although, I wish would've gotten a picture of my full outfit. I was representing NYCM :)

One of the only pictures of my official outfit from the day.

Thanks, Nike!

Things that I did like about the finish line: The water bottle instead of paper cups to be more green. You should already know how happy this made me! The bag they gave you to put your stuff in was a great idea. As well as the Chocolate Milk and EmergenC (not mixed together!) being apart of the post-race nutrition. The Almond clusters were insanely delicious as well.

Overall, I was impressed with the race. The things I did not like about the race, I should've known better and not let it bother me, but what are you going to do? Would I run it again? As long as they keep this AMAZING branding, I'm in! I'm hoping I can pull off San Fran in October. Hopefully, they will offer group registration for their lottery.

Not a bad race to be the last in the teens. Half Marathon #19 in the books!

This is the one race I will always repeat. For a second year in a row, it fell on a Kentucky Derby party. A little awkward flying with a bug hat and wearing heels all day Saturday but still a fun weekend. Sorry I missed you in the start corrals. See you at TOT.

PS. I'm going to SAN FRAN this year too! Coast to coast Tiffany necklaces. LOL

Okay, reading this totally reminded me how much I loved this race and I really hope I can do it again!! I was hoping they'd sort out the corrals / crowding but it sounds like they still need to work on that. But the drum bands? Love! And yes, line and after line is what I remember. Yay!! So glad you got your Tiffany's necklace.